Girls’
Generation (SNSD) had a bumpy road last year. Their
10th year anniversary comeback fell under expectation in terms of
commercial success. Then three of SNSD members, Tiffany, Sooyoung, and Seohyun decided to leave agency SM Entertainment. Public became
doubtful about SNSD future although members insisted there was no disbandment.
One year later, SNSD takes interesting spin towards their status.
The remaining five members in SM Entertainment, Taeyeon, Sunny, Hyoyeon, Yuri, and Yoona creates
a sub unit called Oh!GG. They
released single album Lil’ Touch with
same name title track on Wednesday, September 5th 2018.
The existence of Oh!GG makes public curious. How does their
concept and sound differ from SNSD as whole group? Could five of them carry on?
Check out my review of Lil’ Touch album here………
Lil’ Touch offers pop sound, which resembles previous SNSD hits. It has
catchy refrain part that easy to remember since the first listen. This is the
strongest part throughout the song. Lil’
Touch addictive refrain accompanied by strong beat as well as electronic
guitar sound. All of these combination makes the song becomes more exciting.
What sets Lil’ Touch apart
from SNSD songs is its vocal arrangement. The girls play out with their lower
range, especially during verses. This arrangement makes the song has sultry
vibe. It is different from SNSD songs, which sounds lively because of high
notes.
The domination of lower register is an fresh attempt from Oh!GG.
However, the vocal direction goes nowhere since the middle until end of this
song. It makes Lil’ Touch repetitive.
The absence of strong vocalists, aside from Taeyeon and Sunny, seems greatly
affect them.
As for the music video, Lil’
Touch does not offer something new. We see the girls wander around then
dance in different setting such as glass house, and stairs. It also shot in
tilt angle, which becomes current trend in K-Pop music video.
It is Oh!GG itself who sells the music video. Each of them has
captivating stage presence. They command the screen and shines on their own. This
fits Lil’ Touch lyrics where the
girls ask the boy to approach them.
Lil’ Touch concept also suits Oh!GG. The makeup and styling looks elegant
while adds a bit of sexy touch. It fits their age where Oh!GG is now grown
women, not the cute teenagers who still wear white shirt and jeans like SNSD in
Gee era.
Fermata brings something completely different from Lil’ Touch. It is a simple medium tempo song. The song also dominated
by sweet acoustic guitar melody although there is a touch of tropical house
sound after the refrain.
Similar with Lil’ Touch,
Fermata refrain is a reminiscence of
SNSD songs. It has lovely harmonization. Each member vocal fits well with the
song. There is no one who overpowers others.
Fermata means pause. Throughout the lyrics, Oh!GG talks about how they try
to rise again after obstacles in their life. This seems to be a representation
of the girls’ current condition. Oh!GG comes back a year from underperform
album and members’ departure in agency.
Oh!GG manage to carry SNSD legacy through Lil’ Touch album. Each
song balances between SNSD signature style and Oh!GG different touch. It is
quite unfortunate that there are only two songs on this single album.
Still, Oh!GG need to work on their vocal. Each of them could carry
a tune, but they find difficulties to utilize members’ strength. They also need
to set clearer direction in terms of music and concept in the future. How much
they want to resemble SNSD and stand on their own.
Rating: 3.5/5
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